Monday, April 27, 2009

The Associated Press is reporting today that, "Perry has collected $2.7 million from Washington since becoming governor — four times more than Hutchison's $670,000 from Washington during the same period, a Morning News analysis found".

Perry has been able to raise far more than Hutchison overall because federal campaigns have limits on individual donations, while Texas state campaigns do not. A slightly higher percentage of Hutchison's campaign money has come from Washington.

The money has come from political communities, lobbyists, individuals and interest groups.

We reported last month that Perry's political strategy is to paint Senator Hutchison as a 'Washington outsider'. The AP article continues with comments from Kay's campaign manager and the Texans for Public Justice:

The governor's financial support from the Beltway undercuts efforts to distance himself from the nation's capital by painting himself as the candidate of Texas-style government and Hutchison as the candidate of Washington, which recently landed Perry in the national spotlight amid talk of Texas secession.

"Governor Perry has built a fundraising mechanism well beyond the boundaries of Texas," said Craig McDonald of Texans for Public Justice, a nonprofit group that tracks campaign money. "He has been very successful with special interest groups inside the Beltway."

Hutchison campaign manager Rick Wiley said it's more evidence that Perry likes to bash Washington but has no problem taking its money — except for $555 million in federal unemployment stimulus money, which the governor says has strings attached and he has rejected.

"One has to wonder what kind of strings he's attached to the fundraising haul he had from Washington, D.C.," Wiley said.

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The KVR Poll Tracker

Rasmussen Reports, released on 5/7/2009Hutchison 42%Perry 38%University of Texas, 3/16/09, asked registered likely GOP voters who they'd vote for if the primary were held today...Hutchison 36%Perry 30%